Next year, Home And Away celebrates its thirtieth anniversary – and no one is more surprised than original cast member, Alex Papps.
“That was a looooong time ago,” Alex, 48, laughs. “[But] I’m lucky to have a past that people want to talk about. Even if I wasn’t able to do anything since Home And Away, I was lucky enough to be part of it then – and it’s nice to revisit.”
Tonight, Alex pops ups in Offspring, alongside Kat Stewart. Here, he talks us through some of his favourite roles…
The Henderson Kids (1987)
“Henderson Kids 2 was the first TV job I did. I’d had a few bit-parts before that, over the years, but this was my my first major role. I was a ‘Hills boy’ [from Melbourne’s outer suburbs] with pretty much zero sense of style – even in an eighties context. When I started rehearsals for Henderson Kids, my hair was just a bit longish – long enough for the makeup and hair supervisor, who is one of my best friends still now, to cut my hair into what I later learnt was the notorious mullet hairstyle!”
Home and Away (1988 – 2002)
“The wardrobe designer is still a good friend of mine. He put me in some dreadful eighties things. I don’t know if you’ve seen the original publicity shots from the show, but I’m wearing this candy-striped suit. It’s linen, had those 80s shoulder pads – it was truly hideous. And of course, I had my mullet.”
H&A – Frank and Roo Alex get married
“That pillbox hat! I remember that! Justine and I are still friends – we have been close for years. And I still see Kate Ritchie (Sally). Once in awhile, there’s a reunion, or a few of us will get together. I’m assuming they’ll drag a few of us out next year for the thirtieth anniversary.”
Play School (2005 to present)
“It’s a very fickle industry. I feel very lucky to still be a part of it. Play School coming into my life almost 12 years ago was a real gift – it’s a fantastic job.”
Offspring (2017):
“I knew Kat (Kat Stewart) before filming this episode, as we worked very briefly together on a pilot for a show years ago. Coming in as a guest actor on an established show can be overwhelming, so to have that connection with Kat was great. Also, there were some people from the crew that I had worked with, going right back to The Henderson Kids.The sound recordist, he was on that, and also the wardrobe designer was the original wardrobe designer on Home And Away. Also, we all had a laugh – because Billie obviously has a thing for Play School presenters! Eddie Perfect (who played her ex, Mick), is also on the show!”
